Huey's Sacrifice
by Demon Lord Satan
Summary: Mario's paint can companion knew, when the two of them went into Black Bowser's Castle, that only one of them would return to Port Prisma afterwards. Paper Mario: Color Splash spoilers.


He could feel it in his paint, as soon as they entered Black Bowser's Castle. A sense of foreboding, of impending doom. He tried to brush it off—he was with Mario! Everything would be fine! They'd defeat Bowser, save Princess Peach, and leave relatively unscathed—but even then, he knew it wouldn't be that easy.

Maybe he had realized even before then, back at Sunglow Ridge, where the black paint bomb had covered the scenery with the toxic sludge, that this quest was about far more than just finding and recovering the Paint Stars. Yes, that was important too, and he was proud to have helped restore Port Prisma's fountain, but that wasn't his true purpose.

The feeling only grew when the duo found themselves in the factory producing black paint bombs. So much black paint… Enough to paint the whole world black. It was terrible to behold. He knew it had to be stopped, for the sake of the world… But although they could destroy the machinery and bombs, the black paint wouldn't simply disappear. Mario managed to blow everything up without too much difficulty, thanks to the massive Bob-ombs unwisely placed in the very same room, but then the black paint, having nowhere to go, simply overflowed, flooding the room, then the castle. That was when he knew that, regardless of what happened with Bowser, he, Huey Can, would not be leaving that dark castle with his friend. The pipe they escaped through bought them some time, hopefully enough to beat Bowser and save the princess, but not forever. The black paint would have to be dealt with, and Mario simply couldn't do it.

As they approached what would surely be the final fight, the confrontation with Bowser, Huey began, "Before we go any further, there's something I need to tell you, Mario."

No… He couldn't tell him yet. Mario didn't need anything distracting him now.

"You know… never mind. Now's not the time. Let's keep moving…"

But he deserved to know, after all they'd been through together.

"Actually... I really need to get this off my chest." Not the whole truth, but part of it.

"I feel like we've gotten to know each other pretty well, Mario. Ever since that day when you woke me up by crushing my face with a hammer. We've had some laughs, we've had some hard times...we've had some mild electrocution. But through it all, you've never given up on me—or on finding all of Prism Island's precious Paint Stars. So I guess I just want to say… thank you. No matter what happens next, I will always be grateful for your friendship." He knew he wouldn't have a very long "always", but the rest was true, and he was very grateful to the foreigner who had proven himself to be a true hero. Now, Huey only hoped that he could be a hero, too.

"Well, there's just one thing left to do. Let's go stop Bowser and save Princess Peach! OK, you're right. That's two things." Stay upbeat, stay positive, don't act suspicious. Easier said than done. Of course, with Mario never speaking, it wasn't exactly easy to tell what was going on in his head…. What was with his whole "strong, silent type" thing, anyway? Maybe he bought into the "actions speak louder than words" philosophy a little too much. Whatever the case was, Huey wouldn't know how much Mario knew or suspected yet, or possibly ever. The latter was seeming increasingly likely.

And so Mario and Huey entered the final room, where Black Bowser was waiting with a threat to show them the true meaning of paint, and the battle began.

=^w^=

No matter how much of a beating Bowser took, the black paint kept him going… Huey knew what he had to do for Mario to survive this fight. He had to have Mario turn him back into his original form, so he could steal Bowser's black paint, his power.

After being nothing but a sheet of paper for so long, it was odd being three-dimensional again. He felt heavy, so heavy he was surprised he could still fly, but so much stronger, too. He could do this. He could be a hero.

Absorbing the black paint was still so much more painful than he expected. Funny, wasn't it, that he could feel pain, even though he was just a paint can? No, he had to stay focused, stay strong. For Mario. For Prism Island.

=^w^=

After their victory, Mario and Huey had a brief moment of celebration. But Bowser seemed so confused when all the black paint was gone… He didn't seem to have any recollection of any of the previous events. Was the black paint that powerful? Could it actually possess people? It didn't seem to affect Huey that way, but he still worried. What if he went dark? Who would stop him?

He didn't have long to ponder this, though, as the black paint continued to rise from below. How could there even be so much?! Mario repainted the princess's colorless form and they raced out of the castle, barely avoiding the rising paint, to where Luigi waited to drive them back along Rainbow Road. First Princess Peach, then Mario jumped onto the kart as well. Now, they were only waiting for Huey to come.

"No… I'm afraid I can't. When this castle collapses, all of that black paint is going to fall out and land somewhere. I can't let that happen," Huey insisted. He couldn't chicken out now, not after everything. "I'm a guardian, created to protect the Prisma Fountain in times of crisis. It took me a while to realize it, but my purpose is not to recover the Paint Stars. It's to destroy the black paint." Not destroy it, not exactly, but save the world from it nonetheless.

The castle trembled; whatever force was keeping it in the air was failing.

"The road is about to collapse! You need to leave NOW!" More gently, he added, "I'll be right behind you. I promise. I can fly—remember? I just need to take care of this mess first. I'll see you all at Prisma Fountain!"

"I think he's a-right, Bro. Trust me—I've fallen off Rainbow Road more times than I can count. It's a-now or never!" Luigi drove away just as the road disconnected.

"All right," Huey sighed. "I hate lying to them… But it's the only way!" If Mario knew that Huey wasn't going to make it out, he might refuse to leave, but the paint can wanted, no, needed his friend to be safe. The lie was necessary, but that didn't make it any easier. He had to keep moving, though. He flew below the castle and prayed, "Here goes nothing… Big Paint Stars, grant me the power to SQUEEZE!"

He couldn't have said how he did it, but somehow, he squeezed every last drop of paint from the castle, absorbing it all, without a single drop spilled.

 _Thank you, Big Paint Stars, for giving me this power._

 _Thank you, Luigi, for taking Mario and the princess away from here, for saving them._

 _Thank you, Mario, for teaching me how to be a hero, and for helping me recover the Paint Stars….and for helping me realize my true purpose._

 _Thank you, Prisma Island, for being my home._

 _Thank you._

Now, he only had to take the paint far away, where it couldn't hurt anyone else ever again…

He flew far, far away, to paint the night black, never to return.

* * *

 _A/N: I was not expecting to cry over this game, but I did, so I had to write. I'm mildly annoyed that Huey isn't even listed as a character on this site, but oh well. On that note, I'm planning to also write about Piper, who also made me cry and is not listed and has apparently not been written about by anyone on here. In the meantime, in case I don't finish by the new year, have a great rest of 2016!_


End file.
